Australian-founded women’s health app Ovum has raised $1.7 million to launch its first personalised health assistant for women powered by artificial intelligence.
The round was led by Giant Leap alongside Antler, Wollemi Capital, Nakatomi Venture Studio, Alice Anderson Fund, Dr Nick Engerer, and Tim and Casey Cosh.
Serving as a trusted hub for all medical data, Ovum’s platform integrates and stores blood tests, imaging reports, letters and referrals and has an interactive function for women to ask questions and track any health issue, alongside cycle tracking.
Additionally, the company is creating a unique women-specific AI dataset that will address the gendered AI landscape that exists globally.
This is all aimed at giving women control of their health data, and therefore their health journey. One in two Australian women suffer from a chronic health condition.
Ovum co-founder Dr Ariella Heffernan-Mark said:
“We know that around 1 million women in Australia suffer from endometriosis. But with our current health care framework, it can take 7 to 12 years to reach a diagnosis. That’s a decade of pain and frustration caused by our health system and it’s just one example of a much broader issue.”
“Ovum is the solution to this problem. This is about using new technologies such as AI to level the playing field. Women endure complex and nuanced health conditions and they deserve a solution that directly addresses them.”
Building on a successful beta launch
Following a successful pilot from last year, the funds will be used to launch Ovum’s bespoke AI health assistant to market, aiming to empower women at every stage of their health journey, and to shift women from reactive to preventative health-care.
Ovum has already launched a successful beta of its platform and begun its mission to generate the first longitudinal dataset to improve treatments and diagnostics for women.
The start-up has also received numerous awards including; a $20,000 grant through the LIFTwomen APAC cohort, and the Enterprise, Big Data and AI award at SXSW Sydney.
Placing privacy and security at the core of its design, Ovum users are not required to provide identifiable personal details to use the platform. This is in addition to the platform being built ground up with measures in place to ensure the protection of health data.
Ovum is the culmination of more than four years' work, drawing on founder Dr Ariella Heffernan-Mark's medical expertise and background in reproductive biology and embryology.
In 2023, she was awarded the TOW Randwick Innovation Precinct People’s Choice Award in the Clinical Division for her proposed clinical trials of Ovum, which will commence in 2025 through her pHD with the George Institute for Global Health.
Rachel Yang, Partner, Giant Leap said:
“We invested in Ovum because addressing women's health is not just a rapidly growing market—projected to exceed $121 billion by 2033—but also a vital opportunity to tackle systemic gaps in women’s healthcare. Through our extensive research into the sector, we’ve seen the immense potential for innovation to transform access, outcomes, and equity in healthcare.
“Ovum’s inclusive AI directly tackles the gender health data gap, addressing critical issues like under-diagnosis and delayed treatments that can cost women up to 8 days in productivity per year and significantly impact their overall quality of life. With Dr. Ariella Heffernan-Marks leading the charge, Ovum is redefining healthcare by designing solutions with women, for women, ensuring no one is left behind.”
Early supporter of Ovum, CEO of Wollemi Capital Group Victoria Denholm said:
“We have a focus on founders who are pushing the boundaries in their respective field to make positive change for generations to come. Ariella is driven to make lasting change by disrupting a billion dollar industry and improve health outcomes for Australian girls and women and that’s something we’re proud to support.”
James McClure, Partner at Antler in Australia said,
“With technology advancing rapidly, it’s long overdue that women receive personalised, accessible, and empowering healthcare solutions - and Ovum is exactly that.”
“Dr. Ariella Heffernan-Mark’s vision to empower women with greater control over their health data is both inspiring and essential. Her unwavering commitment to improving women’s health outcomes is matched by her relentless execution, blending AI innovation with deep domain expertise on the unique health challenges women face. We’re beyond excited to support Ovum as they redefine what’s possible in women’s healthcare.”